"Good paint?" What is this mythical "good paint" you speak of? Surely there must be some truth to this legend. It would bring hope to all those poor destitute souls who know not the power of good paint.

"Good paint?" What is this mythical "good paint" you speak of? Surely there must be some truth to this legend. It would bring hope to all those poor destitute souls who know not the power of good paint.

The ultimate truth in paintball is that the interaction between the gun and the player is far and away the largest factor in accuracy, consistency, and reliability.

Yeah, GOOD paint is critical. But, I think there is a misconception that "brand" name paint will always be good... I've seen some EXCELLENT mid grade paint, and then the next time I went to buy it, it looked like dimpled cheese balls...

The KEY is to LOOK at it before you buy it, no matter if it is from a box store OR your local pro shop.

The things I look for. No visible seam. If you can see the seam, it will shoot lousy. If it is dimpled, it will shoot lousy. If it has broken balls in the bag, it will coat the inside of your barrel and shoot lousy... I even made a video months ago about this very subject.

Right now I am using some EXCELLENT paint, best I have used in years, and I got it from my local field as it was "seconds" from the factory. It is Draxxus something. (labeled generic since it was discounted) but this stuff shoots amazing. And you know what, I shoot WAY less of it as I can hit my target so much easier. (course I still throw a bunch of paint at times, because I ENJOY doing that...)

But, for $45 I would have bought a bunch more cases, only thing is they were out... So I got the last case and a bag from them... What we should push for is "born on" dating on the cases, and teaching companies how to transport and store paint. If they put it on a truck that is over 100 degrees, it will ruin the paint... And if they sit it on a shelf for 6 months... again, it will likely be bad as it has to be turned.

Yeah, GOOD paint is critical. But, I think there is a misconception that "brand" name paint will always be good... I've seen some EXCELLENT mid grade paint, and then the next time I went to buy it, it looked like dimpled cheese balls...

The KEY is to LOOK at it before you buy it, no matter if it is from a box store OR your local pro shop.

The things I look for. No visible seam. If you can see the seam, it will shoot lousy. If it is dimpled, it will shoot lousy. If it has broken balls in the bag, it will coat the inside of your barrel and shoot lousy... I even made a video months ago about this very subject.

Good amount of truth to this, freshness/batch quality is a big factor that affects just about all paint. In many cases high end paint may be handled better by the reseller than the field grade stuff, but whenever I am forced to buy mid to low end paint, freshness and batch quality (i.e. ask someone else how it's shooting and um ... look at his balls) are the keys.

High end paint though does have distinct advantages that overcome some of the fluctuations in individual batch (or case) quality -- such as better breakage on target and better marking.

The Academy that I go to has RPS gold in stock usually. Because it is from Academy, I always check the shipping date. It's not as good as a born on date, but combined with a visual inspection, I have never been let down. I just wish there was some way to get ultra evil more broadly available than it is now.... ooh that stuff breaks faster than my car's windshield (been through 2 in as many months).

The MOST important thing in paintball IMO is having fun. You don't need a amazing marker or even(though important) good paint. Some people gain satisfaction from their low-end marker and their low-grade paint. I agree with your stance on this particular issue, but disagree with the title that paint is as phrased "actually important". It is a very important factor in paintball, but I would rather do something I enjoy while putting the amount of money I can afford into a activity, rather than being able to put a endless supply of money into something I absolutely hated. IDK just my .02.(and yes, I am biased as a teen not being able to afford nice paint every time I play, I would if I could, but its not happening)

Super Nintendo, Sega Gensis, when I was dead broke man I couldn't picture this.
-Biggie Smalls
Learned the hard way not to use a speedfeed when its raining. 8/6/11

A very valid point is proven with the video. Demand will always drive a company to produce what the customer wants. An example, Wal-Mart monitors what is selling and what is not selling on their shelves. They employ one of the most complex enterprise management systems in the nation to control their logistical distribution of products to their stores. If they notice one thing isn't being sold, it is simply removed from the shelf and that space is given to something else that sells well in that store. This information is gathered in a database and corporate decisions are based off of demand, yes profit too but that is a different conversation.

As Cockerpunk stated, the most important thing in paintball is the actual paintballs. Call them our linchpin, without them we are just making noise. Of course with the paintballs there will always be three crucial factors involved with it: cost, quality, and availability. If you talk to the guys who used to play back in the 80's, paint cost has definately gone down and to an extent the availability has gone up. So at least those to things are going for us but as far as quality is concerned, paintballers in general need to demand that the quality of paint go up. I don't think anyone can expect this change to happen overnight, but if enough people demand it then I am sure the producers will eventually decide that it is the correct step to take.

As Cockerpunk stated, the most important thing in paintball is the actual paintballs. Call them our linchpin, without them we are just making noise. Of course with the paintballs there will always be three crucial factors involved with it: cost, quality, and availability. If you talk to the guys who used to play back in the 80's, paint cost has definately gone down and to an extent the availability has gone up. So at least those to things are going for us but as far as quality is concerned, paintballers in general need to demand that the quality of paint go up. I don't think anyone can expect this change to happen overnight, but if enough people demand it then I am sure the producers will eventually decide that it is the correct step to take.

exactly right. and it starts by convincing people, that maybe instead of spending 1000 dollars on hard goods that really, when the rubber meets the road, doesn;t really help you much putting paintballs on the other team - but spending a bit more for better paint, will actually make a difference in your ability to put paintball on the other team. and paying that 10-25 buck premium, is actually the single most cost effective way to help your game.

you sell that idea to players -> quality and availability of quality paint, will improve.

The ultimate truth in paintball is that the interaction between the gun and the player is far and away the largest factor in accuracy, consistency, and reliability.

Here is a video I made showing how some paints work better at long range than others. It still gets tons of hits even today... And some of those paints are long gone.

Many perceive that paint will fly the same at different distances, but I've seen enough to know that some paint just flies WAY further than other paints, and also, some paints get wobbly at certain distances, but even out as they fly (the fill must affect their path).

So it clearly isn't an "exact" science, but once you use good paint, it sure stinks to go back to garbage stuff... The sad thing is, you buy it once and it is amazing, and the next box you buy, even though it looks the same, it just doesn't shoot as good... It is annoying how inconsistent paint is.

Here is a video showing what I am shooting now, and I wish they had more of it... It shoots great out of an apex (at 4 clicks) and still breaks at distance. But, it is hard shelled enough you can shoot maximum ramp and it rarely breaks on the ramp. But, if you squeeze it between your fingers, you can't break it. Throw it on the ground and it breaks easily... I wish I knew what it was. Draxxus something.

Thank you for elucidating something which has been running through my mind for years. Most paintball players have their priorties set completely wrong. They spend too much on gear and not enough on what matters. They buy the cheapest paint possible and then they complain about accuracy and bounces. They complain that paintball costs too much, because they shoot too much, because their paint is inaccurate and doesn't break at range.

When I get good paint, my paint usage drops considerably. I'm not wasting paint on misses and bounces. I save money in the long run.

Thank you for elucidating something which has been running through my mind for years. Most paintball players have their priorties set completely wrong. They spend too much on gear and not enough on what matters. They buy the cheapest paint possible and then they complain about accuracy and bounces. They complain that paintball costs too much, because they shoot too much, because their paint is inaccurate and doesn't break at range.

When I get good paint, my paint usage drops considerablty. I'm not wasting paint on misses and bounces. I save money in the long run.

and you have more fun, because you are more effective on the field.

nothing is more frustrating then a bad day because of shitty paint.

Edited by cockerpunk, 29 November 2012 - 11:44 AM.

The ultimate truth in paintball is that the interaction between the gun and the player is far and away the largest factor in accuracy, consistency, and reliability.

In my .pdf that I send out to all the players that attend my private games, I have a section on paint selection. And even though I harp on it often, guys still show up with paint that they haven't looked at until they arrive to play... (and stored it in their trunk of their car the night before... in below freezing temps...)

Keeping paint warm is critical to your success when playing in the cold.Here is what I put in there 7 years ago when I started sending out info on paintball.

"3. Paintballs 500-2,000 per player (this is up to you; it is easy to shoot a lot and run out), so buy enough that we can play for a while. Good paint is very round and the seam is smooth. If they have dimples they are bad news (they have been sitting for a while).

We typically play around 7-12 games per day.Your paint is the most important thing you will buy to play, bad paint breaks often in the barrel and cheap paint will shoot very inaccurately, making it much harder to eliminate your competition. Your best bet is to take your barrel into the store, and open a box to see if the paint is round and not dimpled. Then roll a paintball into your barrel, it should stop inside the barrel, and you should be able to lightly blow into the barrel and have the paintball roll out the end. Checking with a worker prior to this is recommended. They will usually give you tape to close the cartons again."

I play at a field where to bring your own paint incurs a $10 fee per case.the best paint they have is draxxus bronze, which is the "less shitty" paint mentioned being sold at 65 a case. Another field I love has a custom blend, specific to their field, that I absolutely love, it's brittle, trick fill, flys straight, and I hardly bounce anyone. Problem is its specific to their field, and it's blue fill. Other fields won't allow it cuz it "stains the bunkers"( it doesn't) I would use it all the time if I could, but can't.

So...related to this video, I guess I have the question of "What is good paint?" I watched Mike's video on the subject, which largely translates to the fact that it depends on the situation.

For me, a casual to nearly rec ball player that is mostly in the forest and uses a mech, what would be good paint? The best paint I've used at the FPO fields here locally has been Draxxus Field. On a separate occasion, that's also the worst paint I've ever used. Here are my local choices that I've seen:

Draxxus Field as mentioned above.
Diablo Heat is used by the majority of fields. It has a shell that will go through the woods but often bounces instead of breaks. Not the straightest but not too curvy.
XO Spectrum is used by 2 or 3 fields. I've never used it, but hear people say it feels like a marble and never breaks.
Valken Infinity is used at one field. It seemed to bounce less than Heat but didn't go very straight.
One field carries both Empire Custom Blend and RPS Premium. I know nothing of the former and the latter seems to get mixed reviews.

It depends...What I do is look at what they are selling at the field I am at. Sometimes the cheap stuff is better than the high end stuff, and vice versa. If they haven't stored it well, or if the heat has gotten to it, it will shoot lousy, no matter what it costs. I want to LOOK at the paintball before I buy it, and a decent field/store should let you... I often end up buying less of a higher end paint as it is worth it to get 1,000 GOOD paintballs then 2,000 lousy ones...If you can see the seam raised, skip it, if it has dimples, skip it. If it won't roll across the counter without wobbling (meaning it isn't round) skip it. Lower end hard shell paints are less likely to break. So I try to stay away from them, as there is nothing worse than shooting a guy and it bouncing then he turns and takes you out.

Sadly in just playing for a year going through about 100 cases ive never used this mystical "good" paint decent but never flew straight

For it only being your first year, you went through a lot of paint. If you do the math on that and assuming you sat some weekends out due to holidays and other commitments (Just assuming) You would have went through around 3 cases every weekend for the whole year. That`s a lot of money on paint...

Sadly in just playing for a year going through about 100 cases ive never used this mystical "good" paint decent but never flew straight

For it only being your first year, you went through a lot of paint. If you do the math on that and assuming you sat some weekends out due to holidays and other commitments (Just assuming) You would have went through around 3 cases every weekend for the whole year. That`s a lot of money on paint...

Well actually about a year and a half and maybe a bit less. I remember I used to go a lot on every weekend because my friends car got smashed by a construction light post and they gave him a shit ton of money and we spent a lot on paintball. All the good times

thought that it was pretty well known already that good paint shoots better than horrible paint??

Oh well.. I have played many of times with the "premium" paint option at fields. Evil, premium, marbs, allstar, gold, silver, 5star, 4star, etc. Over Stinger, Heat, Bronze, 3star, etc.
It comes down to storage, weather, etc.
I have shot stinger during practice that shot more straight and broke better than a lot of the high end paints at some tournaments I have been to including a national tournament I was at. In fact that national tournament at some of the worst paint I ever shot and was the highest quality at a national event out of a temperature controlled truck. Some of the best was at a regional events where paint was kept on-site in a back room.

I have shot lower and higher brand quality premium paints in the same day more times than I can count. The paint is usually stored in the same area, and if the lower quality sucks that day, the more expensive brand tends to suck just as much too... And it varies field to field. Rather just buy the cheapest because it's all stored in the same conditions and shoots about the same regardless

If you want good paint, I suggest you tell your field/store to store it better, so that once you buy it, it is like it was from the manufacturer and you can continue to store it nice so it shoots good.

Edited by Kirko017, 03 December 2012 - 12:02 AM.

Kent State University Paintball Club
The University of Akron Paintball ClubEminence

Paint at least at the fields that I play in Oregon has not been the best. Does the paint let me play and have fun? Yes I do have fun, but I would like the choice of better paint. I think that fields are going to have the biggest impact on the manufacturer. When I go to a local field to play I see a lot of newbies and second and third timers that buy the cheapest paint they can get their hands on. It is very good to see all these new players coming to paintball, but they do not have the mind set of wanting the best shot that they can get with a higher quality paint. Also they have not committed a part of their budget to paintball like some of us have. It will be up to us, the players that have committed a part of our budget to paintball to let our fields know that there are some who will spend the extra for the quality shot out of our markers.

Also I played for years with a etek 2 and it shot great, and was reliable. Recently I decided to get a new marker and got a good deal on a SLs. It has a smoother and a way quiet shot compared to my etek 2. Could I afford one brand new? No I couldn't, but I have committed a certain part of my budget to paintball. I just need some good paint to throw down the barrel.

exactly right. and it starts by convincing people, that maybe instead of spending 1000 dollars on hard goods that really, when the rubber meets the road, doesn;t really help you much putting paintballs on the other team - but spending a bit more for better paint, will actually make a difference in your ability to put paintball on the other team. and paying that 10-25 buck premium, is actually the single most cost effective way to help your game.

you sell that idea to players -> quality and availability of quality paint, will improve.

You should know, I live an hour north of Duluth. It is is a small miracle that we even have a place that sells paint (Dunhams), let alone high quality paint. But for what we play (THICK woodsball) we can only check to make sure it isn't dimpled worse than a golf ball....because that is the best we are going to get.

I am still curious what make and model this amazing paint was...just for curiosity's sake.

I am still curious what make and model this amazing paint was...just for curiosity's sake.

the make and model is irrelevant because i have have purchased the same make and model both before and after and it has ranged from mediocre to shit.

a large part of the problem, brands are not a very reliable way to determine paint quality.

The make and model isn't usually the problem or deciding factor on if you're paint is good. You're going to have some paintballs designed to shoot better for certain purposes. Example: you have winter blend paints and tournament quality paint is usually more brittle and shoots the best at national events because it is generally more fresh, brought to the events in a temperature controlled truck from the manufacture after it is made, unloaded off truck, put into your hopper, shot at people. So the shells are going to be cooler, more brittle, and the fill/shell will be a little different to ensure a good marking and brittle break when shooting down field. Your more standard paint you get at the local field or website. Usually mass produced at manufacture, stored in warehouse for who knows how long, shipped to field or your house. Stored in who knows what kind of conditions for however long before it even reaches your hopper. The process between the manufacture and your hopper is where the problems occur.

That is why if you ever see anyone bring back their extra tournament paint to practice with. It is usually kept in poor conditions on the travel back home, and before it ever hits their hoppers at practice. And almost always you will see them squeegee out barrel breaks all day or not hitting the broad side of a barn..

That is also why if you chrono early in the morning and then chrono later your fps will usually raise as the ball expands in the warmer temperature.

I am sure the quality it is made at the manufacture is good, it is just everything afterwards that ruins it. Just got to hope where ever you buy it from stores it well. Something you can do to try and get your paint better, show up early to the fields. Have a cooler with a thermometer and keep your balls a little chilled. That usually works best for just two cases or less. If I am using anything more like at tournaments even after we get our cases off the trucks, or big team practices, we get to the field early, have the AC on in the car once the temperature drops to desired temperature, get our paint, store it in there and get the cases as we need them.. I mean it does help keep decent/good paint the same quality. If your balls are already dimpled or oblong, it won't really make them better or shoot more straight, just more brittle so they don't bounce as much.

Hopefully this helps clear some misconceptions up. I really do not think the probably is with the manufacturers...

Edited by Kirko017, 11 December 2012 - 10:35 AM.

Kent State University Paintball Club
The University of Akron Paintball ClubEminence

I'm thinking that if you have a field near you, you most likely have a shop too?

My shop is only about 10 miles away from the field(Field being out in the middle of no where)So I just buy my paint at the store since they have paint varying from Heat to Evil/Marballizer(And you get a coupon for Free Air for the day when you buy a case ). I Usually just buy Mid-Grade being Formula 13 or Karnage Bite. I want to try out Polar Ice with my Etha, but I usually go with my uncle and we just buy 2 cases. I would rather have 4000 for both our use, instead of splitting it; Even though we only go through one case. lol

But storing Low-end compared to Mid-grade makes a difference. I shot leftover Heat paint where about 70% was badly dimpled. Needless to say I shot at nothing just to finish it at the field since it would go everywhere, but straight.